Classical musicians are sensitive souls, so who would have thought that their sweet music masked a tale of exploitation of a vulnerable resource? From bagpipes to oboes, woodwind instruments are made from African blackwood, a resource that has been stripped from indigenous forest communities by governments in alliance with logging companies to the extent that it has disappeared from east Africa. Meanwhile, most musicians are more preoccupied with tone than the provenance of their instruments.

It was up to Neil Bridgland, a conservation campaigner and non-musician, to bang the drum for a different approach. "If we do this properly," he says, "it's a real chance for some of the poorest people in the world to benefit from a resource rather than lose out. These are people who bring up an entire family on £1 a week."

Through the soundandfair.org campaign, Bridgland has established a sustainable chain of custody for African blackwood. Trees and a Tanzanian mill are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), guaranteeing that the wood has been harvested with minimum impact and forest boundaries have been redefined to make sure indigenous communities get a slice of the profit.

Last December the first FSC-certified blackwood was harvested in Tanzania. Then Bridgland spoke to Hanson, the UK clarinet makers: "The light went on. There was immediate recognition and a level of understanding." The first sustainable Hanson clarinet will be ready early next year. Meanwhile, oboist and conductor Nicholas Daniel has become patron of the campaign. This time next year perhaps we'll be listening to the first sustainably harvested chamber group.